GUEST EDITORIAL: Film Review of 2015’s "Spectre"

Film Review of 2015’s Spectre

The follow-up to Skyfall, regarded as one of the finest Bond films ever made, is a much different film than its predecessor. Spectre is a modern take on James Bond’s famous clichés and plot conventions. Unlike Skyfall, it does not slow down for sadness or melodrama, but it pauses for a second then surges forward with high-energy action scenes. Spectre’s stunts are some of the most impressive of the series, and Daniel Craig (Bond) rarely seems able to take a breath after he’s thrown around by Dave Bautista or attacked by twenty black-suited men with submachine guns.

Opening with a Bang

The film opens in Mexico City during the Day of the Dead celebration. Bond pursues a terrorist, Marco Sciarra, through the crowded streets and eventually follows him to a downtown building. After Bond’s bullet hits the terrorists’ explosives, the building collapses, but the villain gets away. Bond tackles him when he tries to escape in a helicopter, and the two wrestle and fight while the helicopter spirals towards the jubilant crowd below. The helicopter stunt is on a higher level of complexity than previous Bond movies, and it’s more exciting than any scene from the Mission Impossible franchise.

Continuing the Tradition

In Spectre, Daniel Craig is a killing machine; his death count lingers near the Rambo total, but he does it with more style than less talented actors. Craig is always confident and believable whether he’s examining classified images on a rugged tablet, saving his love interest from psychopaths, or resisting painful torture from his nemesis. Although Ian Fleming’s novels and previous Bond films never hid 007’s talent for killing and causing mayhem, Spectre highlights Bond as being an assassin, and the word keeps popping up throughout the film.

Assassins are usually associated with the evil side, but Bond is not ashamed of being a hired government killer who defends the crown and saves the world at the same time. However, he plays Bond with more humanity than Connery, Bronson, Dalton or Moore. He’s so likable that you almost forget he murders dangerous people for the Queen.

Enhancing the Old Stereotypes

Spectre is a great Bond film, but it cannot be called original. It uses every plot device that made the franchise famous, but it dresses up the stereotypes with only the kind of flash that a $250 million film allows. Bond is a rogue agent (isn’t he always) who gets his double O status suspended after he’s criticized for blowing up the building in Mexico City. He evades his superiors while he chases the villain and romances the daughter of his former adversary Mr. White. He does whatever he wants and defies the urge to listen to his boss or his helpful colleagues.

Spectre combines the storylines and villains from the 1960s and 1970s. The last time Bond fans heard the evil organization S.P.E.C.T.R.E. mentioned was in 1971 in Diamonds Are Forever, but this time, Christoph Waltz plays the nefarious Blofeld. Waltz is creepier than scary, but his casual demeanor, wild smile, and unique personality help put him near the top of Bond villains. Unlike the Blofeld of previous Bond movies, Waltz does not pet a large white cat or drop henchmen in shark tanks, but he prefers torturing Bond with tiny drill bits.

Another nostalgic touch to Spectre is Dave Bautista’s character. He plays a silent assassin named Mr. Hinx who repeatedly fails to kill Bond and his girlfriend Dr. Swann (Lea Seydoux). Mr. Hinx only utters a single word for the entire film, but he uses his brute strength to do most of the acting. He’s reminiscent of the massive Jaws henchman from the Roger Moore films who seemed to toss Bond around like a ragdoll. Bautista gives Craig the same treatment in Spectre. He battles Bond while traveling by train and throws him repeatedly into walls and windows.

Spectre may not be as majestic or cleverly plotted as Skyfall, but it’s exceptionally entertaining to watch, and unlike the other Bond films it imitates, it’s very well-acted.